216: Chapter 217 Xu Ruohan's Worries

Just as Lin Muyang was inside the independent space, drafting the specific terms of the soul contract with the Giant Dragon Summoner Hansa Bami, and preparing to complete this highly dramatic ritual of seizing control...

Outside, above Crocodile Shark Island, the situation was equally tense.

Between the originally calm sea and sky, the atmosphere was now so heavy it was almost dripping. The azure sea reflected the gloomy sky, as if foreshadowing an approaching storm.

Xu Ruohan, this genius Summoner hailed as a once-in-a-century talent of the Xia Kingdom, now had her beautiful face covered in a layer of frost. She was with two accompanying Nation-Guarding Level Experts of the Xia Kingdom—that spirited 277-level Time Utterance, whose gaze was as sharp as an eagle's.

Just a short while ago, the three of them had stealthily approached Crocodile Shark Island, preparing to rendezvous with Lin Muyang according to the predetermined plan. However, a sudden change occurred. An unfathomable spatial power descended without warning, instantly cutting and distorting this area, forming several isolated, independent small spaces. They didn't even have time to react before they were separated and trapped in different spatial cages.

This method of spatial cutting was exquisite and covert, with almost no warning before it was launched; it clearly came from the hands of a top-tier spatial expert. The purpose was self-evident—to divide and surround them, to defeat them one by one, or at least to ensure they could not support each other, let alone intervene in the main battlefield.

Fortunately, the opponent must have consumed a huge amount of energy to maintain so many stable independent spaces. After briefly trapping them and confirming that the main target, Lin Muyang, had been successfully led into the preset "main battlefield" independent space, that invisible spatial power receded like a tide. Except for the space trapping Lin Muyang, which remained solid, the other spatial cages disintegrated one after another, spitting Xu Ruohan and the others back into real space.

However, what awaited them was not the open sea and sky, but nine enemies lying in wait.

These nine people had varying levels of aura, but without exception, they were all top-tier experts, with the lowest level being above 240. They were scattered around, faintly forming an encirclement, blocking all possible paths of breakout. The energy fluctuations emanating from several of them made even Xu Ruohan feel a faint palpitation.

"That spatial fluctuation just now was very unique, carrying clear directionality and divisiveness." Time Utterance's wrinkled face was calm, her eyes, which seemed able to see through the void, slowly swept over the nine people surrounding them, and finally fixed on a young man at the back of the opposing team who had dreadlocks, dark skin, and a relatively inconspicuous aura. "Creating and maintaining those spaces consumes quite a bit. Now only one spatial barrier remains the most solid... That young man must be inside it."

Her voice was not loud, but it clearly reached the ears of Xu Ruohan and Heartstring. As a top-tier expert specializing in spatial laws, Time Utterance had an extremely keen perception of spatial changes.

"Not only that." Heartstring, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, pushed up his frames, a cold silver light flashing behind his lenses. He was adept at mental probing and telepathy; although he couldn't perform deep investigation due to the large number of opponents and their various defenses, by capturing certain subtle mental ripples and subconscious fragments, combined with the situation on the scene, he had already pieced together part of the truth. "It was that guy who did it." He looked at the dark-skinned young man, his tone certain: "He used some kind of talent or item to create multiple independent spaces to divide us. Right now, at least twelve people are besieging Lin Muyang inside that single independent space."

He paused, his voice becoming lower and more serious: "Among the mental fragments I captured, there were name fragments of Hansa Bami, as well as strong dragon-might imagery..."

"Hansa Bami?!" Hearing this, Xu Ruohan's pupils shrank imperceptibly, and her red lips pressed tightly together. This name was deafening in the circle of top experts on Blue Star. The American Empire's "Dragon Speaker", the legendary Giant Dragon Summoner, whose strength and difficulty were absolutely in the top tier. For even him to personally take action, and to have gathered eleven other experts of the same level to set up this trap... The degree of importance—or rather, dread—the opponent held for Lin Muyang far exceeded their estimates! And the danger Lin Muyang faced had also risen sharply!

"We must break that space immediately!" Xu Ruohan made a prompt decision, cold light flashing in her beautiful eyes. No matter how strong or mysterious Lin Muyang was, being besieged by twelve experts of the same level who were clearly prepared in a closed space, he was definitely in dire straits.

"I'll try to control that spatial manipulator and force him to dissolve the space!" Heartstring shouted in a low voice, hesitating no longer. A brilliant silver light erupted in his eyes, and an invisible yet vast, boundless mental power, like a breached dam, instantly crossed dozens of meters, sweeping precisely toward that dark-skinned young man—the spatial manipulator, Yves Martin! His talent 【Mind Dominator】 was activated, intending to instantly invade the opponent's mind, forcibly control his actions, and revoke the independent space!

However, just as Heartstring's mental power was about to touch Yves Martin—

"Hehe, sir, why be so impatient?"

A lazy female voice with a hint of seduction chuckled. In the opposing camp, a mature woman dressed daringly, with a hot and enchanting figure and wavy blonde hair, elegantly took half a step forward. Between her slender fingers, a string of prayer beads made of different colored gems, exuding misty magical radiance, appeared out of nowhere. She gently raised her hand, and the mythic grade mental defense equipment 【Seven-Colored Protection Beads】 bloomed with a soft, seven-colored halo, which rapidly expanded, like an inverted glazed bowl, shrouding all nine of her own people, including Yves Martin, inside.

Heartstring's ubiquitous, domineering, and sharp mental assault hit this seven-colored light shield, but it was like a clay ox entering the sea, merely stirring up tiny ripples, and was easily neutralized and absorbed, failing to cause any substantial impact on anyone inside the shield, let alone control Yves Martin.

"Wouldn't it be better for everyone to quietly wait for the result inside?" The blonde woman flicked the hair on her forehead, revealing a charming yet dangerous smile: "There are twelve friends inside warmly entertaining that little friend from the Xia Kingdom. Why don't we watch the show here in peace and not disturb them, how about it?"

"【bewitching siren】 Marianne!" Heartstring withdrew his mental power, his face becoming even uglier as he spat out a name in a low voice. This woman was a famous mental master in the American Empire and even the world, especially skilled in mental defense and counter-measures, and the 【Seven-Colored Protection Beads】 in her hand was a mythic grade treasure of mental defense. With her present, and having activated the group mental shield in advance, his Heartstring ability was almost completely crippled; wanting to bypass her to directly control Yves Martin was as difficult as ascending to heaven!

"Attack! Forcefully attack! Break that space!" Seeing this, Xu Ruohan knew that negotiation and tricks were useless, and the only way was to forcefully break the situation. She gave a clear shout and no longer hesitated.

Time Utterance had been prepared for a long time; hearing this, she immediately raised her hand, and her withered palm traced in the air in front of her. Suddenly, transparent shields, smooth as mirrors and with silver spatial ripples flowing on their edges, appeared out of thin air around the three of them, layer upon layer, numbering in the dozens, protecting them 360 degrees without blind spots. These 【Spatial Mirror Shields】 were not purely for defense; each one was connected to a micro-subspace, capable of transferring and banishing most of the incoming attack energy into unknown different spaces, making their defensive power extremely astonishing.

Almost the moment the Spatial Mirror Shields were formed, the other seven people in the opposing camp, besides Marianne and Yves Martin, launched their attacks simultaneously!

An Elf Archer holding a bright green longbow, with eyes as sharp as an eagle's, snapped the bowstring, and seven arrows wreathed in wind and thunder power tore through the sky like shooting stars chasing the moon, aiming directly at Xu Ruohan's face, throat, heart, and other vital points!

An old mage in deep blue robes, holding an ice crystal staff, chanted ancient and obscure incantations, the sky suddenly turned gloomy, and countless hailstones the size of millstones, carrying biting cold and sharp ice blades, turned into a devastating blizzard, smashing down on the three of them!

Two burly men with bulging muscles, one holding a giant sword like a door panel, the other wielding a warhammer wreathed in flames, roared as they flanked from the left and right, their battle aura erupting, their momentum astonishing; they were clearly taking the path of melee assault!

There was also an assassin hidden in the shadows, whose figure was flickering, although he did not appear to attack directly, the cold killing intent like a poisonous snake remained locked on the three, looking for a fleeting flaw.

All kinds of powerful skills, carrying brilliant radiance and destructive energy fluctuations, instantly submerged the location of Xu Ruohan and the others! The sounds of explosions, elemental roars, and weapons breaking through the air were endless, and the energy turbulence squeezed the surrounding seawater into huge depressions, kicking up monstrous waves!

However, such violent attacks, falling on those layers of 【Spatial Mirror Shields】, caused a strange scene. Arrows, hailstones, flames, battle aura slashes... All attacks, the moment they touched the mirror shields, seemed to crash into bottomless pools, merely causing ripples on the mirror surface before disappearing without a trace; only a very small part of the energy was reflected or deflected, failing to cause any substantial threat to the three behind the shields.

"With the Spatial Mirror Shields here, their attacks won't be able to break through for a while." Time Utterance maintained the spell, slight sweat appearing on her temples. Supporting so many high-intensity Spatial Mirror Shields simultaneously was also a considerable burden for her. Her eyes were like electricity, staring fixedly at Yves Martin, who was protected behind the crowd and trying to quietly retreat away from the battlefield. "But this shield is mainly for defense and transfer; it's insufficient for trapping enemies. We must capture or interfere with that spatial manipulator as soon as possible, otherwise, Lin Muyang is in danger!"

Xu Ruohan nodded heavily, her beautiful face full of murderous intent. She no longer held back, her jade hand lifted slightly, and a silver bracelet with an archaic design on her fair wrist shone brightly.

"In my name, I call upon the light of protection—descend, my partners!"

Amidst the clear chanting, one pillar of scorching white holy light after another shot into the sky from around Xu Ruohan! Within the pillars of light, graceful figures with wings on their backs could be vaguely seen condensing.

The first to step out of the light pillar was a War Angel holding a giant sword burning with holy flames, wearing golden armor, and looking solemn, her whole body exuding a dignified and inviolable battle aura.

Immediately following, a Healing Angel holding a staff embedded with a large blue sapphire, surrounded by a soft water-blue halo, appeared, her gaze gentle, as if she could soothe all pain.

Another Punishing Angel with four wings, holding a golden longbow, with eyes as sharp as an eagle's, spread her wings, her cold killing intent locked onto the enemies in the distance.

A Wisdom Angel holding a codex and wearing a crown of knowledge...

A Chanting Angel playing a golden harp, whose singing voice could soothe the soul...

In just a few short breaths, a full eight angels of different temperaments, but equally powerful, beautiful, and exuding holy auras, flapped their white wings and hovered behind Xu Ruohan! Some held swords, some grasped staffs, some drew bows, or held books... Each exuded powerful energy fluctuations, their auras connected to each other, and they had faintly formed an arcane battle formation!

Eight-winged Archangel! Six-winged Dominion Angel! Four-winged Power Angel! Two-winged Lord Angel! A full eight high-level angels! This was the confidence and strength of Xu Ruohan as a top Summoner of the Xia Kingdom! Each angel possessed combat power no less than a 250-level expert, and their abilities were complementary and coordinated perfectly!

"Attack! Create chaos, capture the ringleader first!" Xu Ruohan pointed her jade hand at Yves Martin, who was heavily protected in the rear, and ordered the angels.

The War Angel and the Punishing Angel responded first; the former swung her giant sword, slashing out a scorching white sword light that seemed to split the sky and earth, hacking directly at the opposing camp! The latter's longbow was like a full moon, and a golden light arrow, condensed to the extreme and seemingly able to pierce through the void, arrived first despite being shot later, aiming directly at the center of Yves Martin's brows!

The Wisdom Angel's codex moved without wind, emitting invisible ripples, interfering with the opponent's mental and energy operations. The Chanting Angel's harp sounded an ethereal and penetrating movement; wherever the sound waves passed, space rippled, attacking the soul directly.

The other angels also used their various means, some releasing group buffs, some setting up holy barriers, or casting large-scale control divine arts...

Eight high-level angels attacked simultaneously, their power earth-shattering! The holy light instantly illuminated half the sky, dispelling the haze and also crushing part of the opponent's attack formation. The originally impenetrable encirclement showed a momentary loosening and chaos.

Time Utterance's eyes lit up, seizing the opportunity, her figure flickered as if merging into space, and the next instant she appeared on the flank, her withered palm grasping vaguely in the direction of Yves Martin: "Spatial Shackles!"

Invisible spatial power, like countless chains, wound toward Yves Martin from all directions, wanting to completely imprison him on the spot!

Heartstring also fully drove his mental power, cooperating with the Wisdom Angel's interference, trying to break through the protection of Marianne's 【Seven-Colored Protection Beads】 and affect Yves Martin's mind.

The opposing camp clearly did not expect Xu Ruohan to launch such a large formation as soon as she acted; the pressure of eight high-level angels was simply too strong. The two melee burly men roared and tried to intercept the War Angel's sword light, but were shaken back repeatedly. The Elf Archer and the Frost Old Mage were also held back by the Punishing Angel's light arrows and the other angels' long-range attacks. Marianne's face changed slightly, and she fully drove the beads; the seven-colored light shield flickered, trying her best to resist the dual impact of mental and holy power.

Yves Martin was even more scared, his face turning pale. His own combat power was not outstanding, and he relied entirely on his superb spatial manipulation ability to gain a foothold. At this moment, being locked on by multiple experts' auras and bound by spatial power, he felt as if he had fallen into a quagmire, his movements difficult, and he was suffering in his heart, desperately mobilizing his power to break free from the spatial shackles, while trying to move to the safe area in the rear.

Seeing that the Xia Kingdom trio had tacit understanding and the angel legion was extremely strong, about to break through the defense line and threaten Yves Martin...

A sudden change occurred!

Without any warning, just to the left of the center of the battlefield, that void that was originally empty suddenly, like a broken mirror, burst into countless fine, twisted cracks!

Crack—crackle—

The crisp and tooth-aching sound of breaking was clearly audible even amidst the deafening roar of battle.

Immediately after, under the astonished, bewildered, and incredulous gazes of everyone, that piece of void, along with the independent space that existed stably within it, which Yves Martin had spent a great deal of effort to create and maintain, actually shattered with a bang, as if it could not withstand the internal pressure like an eggshell!

Spatial fragments splashed in all directions like crystalline ice crystals, and quickly dissolved into nothingness during the splashing process, revealing the deep darkness behind it, and... several figures slowly walking out of the shattered space.

The leader was in black clothes and black hair, with a calm expression; it was Lin Muyang.

Behind him, six beautiful girls with different charms followed closely; they were Lilia, Elabess, Gui Wanwan, Alice, Su Daji, and Seraphina.

And a little further behind Lin Muyang to the side, a middle-aged burly man with a thick beard, a complex expression, and a bit of awe and helplessness, stood with his hands down; it was Hansa Bami. What made people's pupils shrink even more was that behind Hansa Bami, seven huge, scaled, dragon-might-filled winged dragons were hovering quietly; in their eyes looking at Lin Muyang, there was actually a hint of unspeakable submission?